Glasgow woman vows to quit smoking after husband??s death

Linda Gilmour of King??s Park helplessly witnessed her husband perish to lung cancer and is determined now to end her longtime addiction to nicotine, reports the Glasgow Evening Times.

Ms. Gilmour, who is now 55, tells the Scottish tabloid in an interview that she has been smoking 10 cigarettes per day for the last 38 years of her life but feels it??s time she quits, admitting that seeing her husband John suffer agonisingly pushed her to take the quit decision. She has enrolled herself in a local government-run smoking cessation programme for help and support in quitting.

The story of Linda breaks during the Clear the Air campaign ?? jointly run by the Evening Times and NHS Glasgow, Clyde and Lanarkshire ?? to raise mass awareness in the greater Glasgow area about the dangers of smoking.

The tabloid learns that Linda??s husband, who used to be a heavy smoker himself, died December last year at the age of 58 after fighting lung cancer for some time. Her decision to join a quit smoking support group instead of trying on her own could be fruitful because individuals on external aids to stop smoking are four times more likely to succeed compared to people looking to kick the deadly habit unaided, the Evening Times notes.

NHS-run stop smoking programmes have had their fair share of success in the UK, with nearly 38,000 people butting out in Glasgow and its surrounding areas in the last 3 years, the Evening Times says with a note of optimism.

Linda??s battle against tobacco addiction is a classic example of how a group of people trying together to reach a common goal after losing someone dear to smoking-induced illnesses can make a difference. You give yourself and the others a better chance to quit smoking when you are in a group than alone, emphasises one of the trainers at the smoking cessation camp Linda has joined.